Category Archives: Blog

Fun on 10GHz – 1

Posted on August 13, 2019 by g4hsk

Over the last 20 years or so I’ve rarely operated my radio equipment away from home. This has changed since I’ve caught the “microwave bug” and got started on the 10GHz band. My 10GHz setup comprised initially of just a … Continue reading →

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Yaesu G-5500 Fault

Posted on August 4, 2019 by g4hsk

  About two weeks ago my Yaesu G-5500 rotator controller developed a strange fault. The Azimuth (AZ) meter would not display correctly, the Elevation (EL) meter was working fine. The AZ meter showed only ~20 degrees but the EME antennas … Continue reading →

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10GHz – Frequency Accuracy and Stability

Posted on May 27, 2019 by g4hsk

One of the key things that I have learnt from my EME activities is that frequency accuracy and stability is very important. My current 10GHz equipment comprises of a DB6NT G4 Transverter (TVTR) and an ICOM IC-706 transceiver for the … Continue reading →

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An Arduino Based Antenna Switch For The IC-7300

Posted on November 20, 2018 by g4hsk

Since purchasing the IC-7300 I’ve used it mainly on 4m and 6m with the occasional venture down onto the lower bands. With the Sporadic-E season and good conditions on 10m it highlighted one of the shortcomings of the IC-7300… it … Continue reading →

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Revisiting the LDF5-50 MagLoop

Posted on July 23, 2018 by g4hsk

I’ve had a lot of fun using the LDF5-50 based MagLoop. By adding and swapping one or more high-voltage doorknob style capacitors it’s been possible to cover the 80m <> 20m bands. The only two negative things being that the … Continue reading →

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What’s your handle?

Posted on June 1, 2018 by g4hsk

For many years I’ve owned a Nissan X-Trail, in fact two, initially a petrol sport and then a diesel. I had an Icom IC-706 with a remote head unit installed. This was used mainly when stationary, with various roof mounted … Continue reading →

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Revisiting the LDF4-50 MagLoop

Posted on May 7, 2018 by g4hsk

Today I decided to enjoy the fine weather and do some further outdoor tests with the LDF4-50 MagLoop. I constructed this loop last year. Up until now this loop hasn’t really been used, all my MagLoop experiments have been done … Continue reading →

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A ProgRock and a very old MMT 144/28 Transverter

Posted on May 2, 2018 by g4hsk

Having got the 10MHz side of the ProgRock project working (see here for details) the next stage was to look at the 116MHz output. If this was also acceptable, I would have an alternative means of generating the two frequencies … Continue reading →

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Building a ProgRock kit for use as a frequency reference for VHF / UHF Transverters – 1

Posted on March 20, 2018 by g4hsk

The ProgRock is a kit produced by QRP-Labs. It is described as a triple GPS-disciplined programmable crystal, based around a Si5351A Synthesizer. Having read positive reports on the ProgRock I decided to order one, plus the optional GPS kit. I … Continue reading →

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LDF5-50 MagLoop on 80m

Posted on February 8, 2018 by g4hsk

When I first made this MagLoop my goal was to be able to use it on the 40m band, and this was achieved. Recently I began to wonder if it might also work on 80m. So the MagLoop was setup … Continue reading →

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